Inline document collaboration workflow

ABSTRACT

Inline document collaboration workflows are provided. When a user receives an electronic communication that includes an attached content item, the receiving user may select the attached content item and cause the attached content item to be displayed in an immersive view in proximity to an electronic communication pane in which an electronic communication may be conducted about any topic including the content item that is displayed in proximity to the electronic communication pane. During editing of a content item, an electronic communication may be generated from a user interface in which the content item is being generated, or alternatively a new content item may be generated out of an electronic communications user interface.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 61/973,139, filed Mar. 31, 2014.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Computer and computer software users have become accustomed togenerating, editing, receiving and sending many types of content items,for example, documents of different types, photographs, images,electronic mail items, calendaring items, notes items, and the like. Ina typical electronic mail setting, a user often attaches a document orother content item (hereafter referred to as “attachment” or “contentitem”) to an electronic mail item he/she then sends to a receiving userfor review or editing. The receiving user then typically downloads thereceived attachment to her local computing device or to an enterprise(local or remote) storage depository, for example, a company or schoolfile server or a remote server at which the receiving user has a storagelocation or at a collaborative file storage location at which thesending user and the receiving user store content items for receivingand editing as part of a collaborative work group of any of a number oftypes.

That is, many user tasks involve using both content items of varioustypes and electronic communications (e.g., electronic mail) together ina general workflow that involves sending and receiving electroniccommunications and reviewing various content items. Current softwaresolutions treat electronic communications and content items as twoseparate entities. Users must do a lot of manual work such as openingreceived attached content items, editing and saving attached contentitems, re-attaching edited content items to a subsequent electroniccommunication, and then sending the communication along with the editedand attached content item to a desired one or more recipients. There isa need for methods and systems for allowing relevant content items to bepaired with relevant communications (electronic mail or other types ofcommunications) so that a user may reduce the time-consuming andinefficient process of receiving, storing, editing, storing, retrieving,attaching, and disposing of content items in association with anelectronic communications system. It is with respect to these and otherconsiderations that the present invention has been made.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the detaileddescription. This summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended asan aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

Embodiments of the present invention solve the above and other problemsby providing inline document collaboration workflows. According toembodiments, when a user receives an electronic communication thatincludes an attached content item, the receiving user may select theattached content item and cause the attached content item to bedisplayed in an immersive view in proximity to an electroniccommunication pane in which an electronic communication may be conductedabout any topic including the content item that is displayed inproximity to the electronic communication pane. Electroniccommunications may be conducted without edits to the selected anddisplayed content item. Alternatively, if the user desires to edit theselected and displayed content item, the user may enter an editing modewherein functionality associated with a document type of the selectedand displayed document may be displayed in the immersive view pane wherethe selected and displayed document is displayed. Using the providedfunctionality, the user may edit the displayed document, and accordingto one embodiment, upon editing the desired document, an instance of theedited document may be automatically saved for subsequent communication.According to one embodiment, upon initiating an editing function withrespect to a selected and displayed content item, an electroniccommunication may be automatically generated in the electroniccommunication pane for attaching a copy of or pointer to the editedcontent item and for providing a communication to one or morerecipients.

According to one embodiment, a “hide” function may be enabled for hidingtemporarily or until subsequently “unhidden” the electroniccommunication thread to allow a greater display surface space for theselected and viewed or edited content item. In addition, a user mayinitiate and conduct an electronic communication about a content item byinitiating the electronic communication from a client applicationassociated with the content item.

According to another embodiment, a new content item may be generated outof an electronic communications user interface. For example, if a useris utilizing an electronic mail client application and an associateduser interface, an insert function may be provided for allowing the userto insert a new content item of various types into the electroniccommunications user interface. If the user selects to enter a file of agiven file type, an instance of a user interface for the selecteddocument type that includes functionality of the associated application,for example, word processing functionality, may be displayed in theimmersive view pane of the electronic communication user interface forallowing the user to create a content item of the desired document type.

The details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the accompanyingdrawings and description below. Other features and advantages will beapparent from a reading of the following detailed description and areview of the associated drawings. It is to be understood that thefollowing detailed description is explanatory only and is notrestrictive of the invention as claimed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is simplified block diagram illustrating a system for electroniccommunication-based storage and use of documents and other content itemsto support multiple workflows.

FIG. 2A illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electronicmail application with which embodiments the present invention practiced.

FIG. 2B illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electronicmail application with an immersive view pane in which a received contentitem may be displayed for viewing.

FIG. 2C illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electronicmail application with an immersive view pane in which a received contentitem may be displayed for viewing.

FIG. 2D illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electronicmail application with an immersive view pane in which a received contentitem may be displayed for viewing.

FIG. 2E illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electronicmail application with an immersive view pane and showing a launching ofa software application associated with a received content item.

FIG. 2F illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electronicmail application with an immersive view pane and showing a display ofsoftware application functionality for allowing editing of a receivedcontent item.

FIG. 2G illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electronicmail application and showing attachment of an edited content item fordisposition according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2H illustrates a computer-generated user interface showing a “hideemail” function.

FIG. 2I illustrates a computer-generated software application userinterface from which an electronic communication may be launched inassociation with a content item.

FIG. 2J illustrates a computer-generated electronic mail user interfacewith which a content item may be sent to one or more desired recipients.

FIG. 2K illustrates a computer-generated electronic communication userinterface in which a content item may be created.

FIG. 2L illustrates a computer-generated electronic communication userinterface in which a content item may be created.

FIG. 2M illustrates a computer-generated electronic communication userinterface in which a content item may be created.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a method for inline documentcollaboration through various workflows.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating example physical components of acomputing device with which embodiments of the invention may bepracticed.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are simplified block diagrams of a mobile computingdevice with which embodiments of the present invention may be practiced.

FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram of a distributed computing systemin which embodiments of the present invention may be practiced.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawingsand the following description to refer to the same or similar elements.While embodiments of the invention may be described, modifications,adaptations, and other implementations are possible. For example,substitutions, additions, or modifications may be made to the elementsillustrated in the drawings, and the methods described herein may bemodified by substituting, reordering, or adding stages to the disclosedmethods. Accordingly, the following detailed description does not limitthe invention, but instead, the proper scope of the invention is definedby the appended claims.

As briefly described above, embodiments of the present invention aredirected to providing inline document collaboration workflows. Accordingto embodiments, when a user receives an electronic communication such aselectronic mail, text message, instant message, chat message, or thelike, where the electronic communication includes an attached contentitem, for example, a document, dataset, image, and the like, thereceiving user may select the attached content item and cause theattached content item to be displayed in an immersive view in a userinterface in a side-by-side or top/bottom orientation relative to anelectronic communication pane in which an electronic communication maybe conducted about any topic including the content item that isdisplayed in proximity to the electronic communication pane.

According to embodiments, electronic communications may be conductedwithout edits to the selected and displayed content item. Alternatively,if the user desires to edit the selected and displayed content item, theuser may enter an editing mode wherein functionality associated with adocument type of the selected and displayed document (for example, aword processing functionality, a spreadsheet functionality, slidepresentation functionality, notes taking functionality, and the like)may be displayed in the immersive view pane where the selected anddisplayed document is displayed. Using the provided functionality, theuser may edit the displayed document, and according to one embodiment,upon editing the desired document, an instance of the edited documentmay be automatically saved with the electronic communication message atan electronic communication server, or alternatively, the changes madeto the edited document may be pushed to a corresponding instance of thedocument stored at another storage location.

Upon initiating an editing function with respect to a selected anddisplayed content item, an electronic communication may be automaticallygenerated in the electronic communication pane for attaching a copy ofor pointer to the edited content item and for providing a communicationto one or more recipients to which the edited content item will be sent.Upon sending the automatically-generated communication and the attachededited content item, an electronic communication conversation may bedisplayed in the electronic communication pane showing a conversationthread associated with the edited content item.

A “hide” function may be enabled for hiding temporarily or untilsubsequently “unhidden” the electronic communication thread to allow agreater display surface space for the selected and viewed or editedcontent item.

A user may initiate and conduct an electronic communication about acontent item by initiating the electronic communication from a clientapplication associated with the content item. For example, if a user iscurrently editing a spreadsheet document in a user interface provided bya spreadsheet application, electronic communication functionality may beprovided in the client application user interface, for example, “replywith changes” or “send document to recipients”, or the like may beprovided in the user interface of the client application. Thus, forexample, if a user is editing an example spreadsheet document, the usermay select a communications functionality, for example, “reply withchanges” functionality, and an instance of electronic communicationsuser interface, for example, an electronic mail user interface, may beprovided in proximity to the being-edited document or overlaying thebeing-edited document, and an electronic communication may beautomatically generated in the electronic communication user interfacefor sending the being-edited document to a desired recipient. Accordingto this embodiment, an attachment of the being-edited document may beautomatically placed into the automatically-generated electroniccommunication, so that a recipient of the communication may select theattachment for view and/or editing the being-edited document.

A new content item may be generated out of an electronic communicationsuser interface. For example, if a user is utilizing an electronic mailclient application and an associated user interface, an insert functionmay be provided for allowing the user to insert a new content item ofvarious types into the electronic communications user interface. If theuser selects to enter a file of a given file type, for example, a wordprocessing document, a spreadsheet document, a slide presentationdocument, a notes taking application document, or the like, an instanceof a user interface for the selected document type that includesfunctionality of the associated application, for example, wordprocessing functionality, may be displayed in the immersive view pane ofthe electronic communication user interface for allowing the user tocreate a content item of the desired document type. When the usercompletes creation of the content item of the desired document type, thenewly created document may be stored with an electronic communication ata corresponding electronic communication server, or the document may besaved to a different storage location, as desired.

Upon entering edit mode for the document being created, an electroniccommunication, for example, an electronic mail, may be automaticallygenerated in a corresponding electronic communication pane, and anattachment may be placed in the automatically-generated electroniccommunication for sending the being-created content item to a desiredrecipient. According to this embodiment, upon selection of a save andsend function, the newly created document may be both saved to a desiredlocation, and the electronic communication may be sent to a desiredrecipient along with an attachment of the newly created content item oralong with a pointer to a storage location of the newly created contentitem to allow a recipient of the electronic communication to access thenewly created content item.

FIG. 1 is simplified block diagram illustrating a system 100 forelectronic communication-based storage and use of documents and othercontent items to support multiple workflows. As Illustrated in FIG. 1, avariety of users 102 a, 102 b, 102 c, 102 n are illustrated inassociation with respective client devices 104 a, 104 b, 104 c, 104 n.The users and the associated client devices are illustrative of one ormore users who may generate, edit, receive, send, or otherwise interactwith content items of various types as described herein. The clientdevices 104 a-104 n are illustrative of a variety of computing devices,for example, desktop computing devises, laptop computing devices, tabletcomputing devices, handheld computing devices (mobile phones), and thelike. Each of the example computing devices may be interacted withaccording to a variety of input means, for example, keyboard input,mouse input, electronic pen and ink input, touch input, gesture input,voice input, eye tracking input, and the like. At each of the clientdevices 104 a-104 n, a variety of software applications may be providedfor allowing the one or more users to interact with a variety of contentitems. For example, software applications such as electronic mailapplications, word processing applications, slide presentationapplications, spreadsheet applications, notes taking applications,desktop publishing applications, calendaring applications, imageprocessing and editing applications, and the like may be operated at theclient devices by the one or more users 102 a-102 n. The network 120 isillustrative of an enterprise-based network, for example, an intranet,or a distributed computing network, for example, the Intranet, overwhich the various users may communicate with each other and with othercomputing systems, as described herein.

The mailbox server 108 is illustrative of an electronic communicationsystem that may be located local to one of the various users, or thatmay be located remotely from the various users for allowing electronicmail and other electronic communications between the various users. Anexample of a server 108 may be an EXCHANGE server from MicrosoftCorporation. The electronic communication item 110 (e.g., email item) isillustrative of an electronic communication that may be communicatedbetween one or more users for passing text-based communications, and avariety of attached files, for example, audio files, text files, imagefiles, data files, and the like. The temporary copy of a document 106 isillustrative of a temporary storage of an edited attached content itemthat is edited in association with an electronic communication item andthat is temporarily stored with an electronic communication at theelectronic mail server 108 for disposition according to embodiments ofthe present invention. The collaboration server 112 is illustrative of alocal or remote storage repository at which one or more content itemsmay be stored. For example, the collaboration server 112 may be a sharedresources server located at an enterprise accessible by the varioususers, or may be remotely located from the various users at which thevarious users may store and collaborate on various documents. An exampleof such a collaboration server 112 may include a SHAREPOINT server orONEDRIVE server from Microsoft Corporation.

According to embodiments of the present invention, when an attachedcontent item is received and edited by a given user, a temporary copy106 of the edited content item is stored with the received electroniccommunication item 110 at the electronic communication server 108. Thecontent item is only stored at the collaboration server 112 if a givenuser desires to store the received content item apart from theelectronic communication server 108 as described with respect toembodiments illustrated and described herein.

FIG. 2A illustrates a computer-generated user interface of an electroniccommunication application with which embodiments the present inventionpracticed. An example electronic communication application suitable forembodiments described herein includes OUTLOOK from MicrosoftCorporation. As illustrated in FIG. 2A, a user interface 200 for anexample electronic mail application with which a user may send andreceive a variety of electronic messages, and with which a user may sendand receive content item attachments according to embodiments of thepresent invention is illustrated. An electronic mail folder pane 210 isillustrated on the left side of the user interface 200 in which avariety of folders, contact items, group items, calendar items, and thelike, may be provided to allow a user to select various folders,contacts, or other items associated with her electronic communicationapplication functionality. An electronic communication items folder 205is illustrated in which a variety of electronic communication itemsreceived by the receiving user are displayed that may be selectivelyreviewed and responded to according to the functionality of theassociated electronic communication application. For example, the pane205 may include an inbox for listing all received electronic mail items,a sent box for listing sent electronic mail items and/or the contents ofa given folder of electronic communication items.

On the right side of the example user interface 200 is displayed anelectronic communication viewing pane in which a given electroniccommunication message or electronic communication conversation thread ofitems may be displayed for allowing a user to read or otherwise interactwith a given electronic communication message, for example, replying tothe message, forwarding the message, and the like. That is, uponselection of a given communication item (e.g., an electronic mail item)listed in an inbox displayed in the pane 205, the selected item may beopened in the pane 215 to allow the user to read or respond to thecommunication item. If the selected communication item contains a threadof multiple communication items comprising a communication conversation,then the entire thread of items may be displayed in the pane 215 toallow the user to navigate through the various items in the thread.

As illustrated in FIG. 2A, an example electronic mail message 235 hasbeen received by the receiving user and has been opened in theelectronic communications pane or canvas 215. The received electronicmail message includes three example attachments 220, 225, 230. As shouldbe appreciated, the attachments 220, 225, 230 are illustrative of anyattached content item, for example, a word processing document, aspreadsheet document, a slide presentation document, a notes document,an image file, a photograph, and the like, that may be received by thereceiving user from a sending user.

According to embodiments of the present invention, if a user selects oneof the attached content items 220, 225, 230, the selected content itemmay be displayed in an immersive view pane 237 for allowing a user toview and/or edit the selected content item. As illustrated in FIG. 2A,an example user selects the example word processing document attachmenticon 220 for viewing and interacting with the selected document 220, asdescribed herein.

Referring now to FIG. 2B, in response to the receiving user's selectionof the attachment item 220, as illustrated in FIG. 2A, the associateddocument 240 is automatically displayed in an immersive view pane 237for allowing the user to review and interact with the associateddocument 240. As illustrated in FIG. 2B, the immersive view pane ispositioned on the left side of the user interface 200, and theelectronic mail view pane 215 remains displayed on the right side of theuser interface 200. As should be appreciated, the respective viewingpanes may be displayed in other orientations, for example in aright/left orientation where the immersive view pane is displayed on theright side of the user interface and the electronic mail pane isdisplayed on the left, a top/bottom orientation where the immersive viewpane is displayed on the top of the interface 200 and the electroniccommunication pane is displayed on the bottom of the interface 200, or abottom/top orientation where the immersive view pane is displayed on thebottom of the interface 200 and the electronic communication view paneis displayed on a top of the interface 200. Alternatively, if thecomputing device in use by the receiving user is a small form device,such as a tablet computing device or mobile phone, and display space isinsufficient for displaying both the immersive view pane and theelectronic communication view pane, then the immersive view pane 237 maybe displayed over the entire display surface of the computing device,and a functionality button or control may be provided for selectivelyreturning the electronic communication view pane to display, as desired.Alternatively, a truncated display of the electronic communication viewpane may be provided and the remaining display space may be used for theimmersive view pane.

Referring still to FIG. 2B, according to one embodiment, a user of theelectronic communication user interface 200 may begin an electroniccommunication in the electronic communication pane 215 without editingthe content item 240 selected and displayed in the immersive view pane237. That is, by selecting one or more communication functions, forexample, the reply function 246, a reply to all function, a forwardfunction, and the like, the user may conduct an electronic communicationwith a variety of users inside the electronic communication pane 215without affecting a display of the content item 240 displayed in theimmersive view pane 237.

Referring to FIG. 2C, after selection of an electronic mail conversationfunction, for example, the reply function 246, a new electroniccommunication 257 is illustrated as being generated in the electroniccommunication pane 215 for allowing the user to enter an electroniccommunication. As should be appreciated, if desired, the user generatingthe electronic communication 257 may attach the content item 240 to thecommunication 257 for sending the communication and the attached contentitem to one or more other recipients, or the user may simply wish toreply back to the sending user that originally sent the communicationhaving the attached content item 240. In such a case, each user at twodifferent locations may select and display the attached content item 240in their respective immersive view panes, while simultaneouslyconducting an electronic communication in the electronic communicationpane 215 about any topic, including the content item 240 that isdisplayed in the immersive view panes of each of their respectiveelectronic communication user interfaces 200.

Referring now to FIG. 2D, an edit/copy function 245 is provided forallowing a user to selectively edit the document 240 displayed in theimmersive view pane 237. That is, as will be described below, selectionof the edit/copy function 245 may cause a provision of functionalityassociated with the document 240 to allow the user to edit the document240 in association with the provided functionality. As should beappreciated, the edit/copy function 245 is illustrative of one of avariety of functions that may be provided in the immersive view pane forallowing a user to operate on the document displayed in the immersiveview pane. For example, other functions that may be provided may includea send function for allowing the user to send the document 240 toanother user, a save function for allowing a user to save the documentto a storage location such as the collaboration server 112, describedabove, and the like.

Referring to FIG. 2E, according to embodiments of the present invention,if a user selects the edit/copy function 245, an application associatedwith the content item type for the content item displayed in theimmersive view pane may be launched in the immersive view pane. In FIG.2E, a word processing web-based application 250 is launched in responseto a selection of an edit/copy function for the document displayed inthe immersive view pane, as illustrated in FIG. 2C. That is, if thedocument 240 is a word processing application, then selection of an editfunction associated with the document 240 may cause the launching andretrieval of word processing functionality for allowing a user to editthe document in association with application functionality with whichthe document was created. For example, if the document 240 is aspreadsheet document, then selection of an edit function 245 may causethe launching of spreadsheet application functionality in the immersiveview pane. Likewise, if the document 240 is a slide presentation, thenselection of an edit function 245 may cause the launching and provisionof slide presentation application functionality in the immersive viewpane for use with the document displayed in the immersive view pane. Asillustrated in FIG. 2E, a web-based application 250 is launched inresponse to the selection of an edit/copy function 245, but asappreciated, a local or remote word processing application may similarlybe launched for providing functionality in association with the document245.

Referring now to FIG. 2F, in response to a selection of an edit/copyfunction 245, as illustrated in FIGS. 2D, and in response to a launchingof an associated example word processing application, as illustrated inFIG. 2E, a variety of word processing functionalities 255 may beprovided in the immersive view pane for allowing the receiving user toedit the document 240. As should be appreciated, an instance of a wordprocessing application may be launched and displayed in the immersiveview pane, or selected functionalities, for example, formattingfunctionalities may be provided in the immersive view pane for allowinga user to operate certain word processing functions on the document 240.Likewise, if the document 240 is a spreadsheet document, then aninstance of a spreadsheet application may be launched in the immersiveview pane, or certain functionalities of a spreadsheet application maybe provided in the immersive view pane.

Referring still to FIG. 2F, according to one embodiment, when thereceiving user selects the document 240 for editing, a draftcommunication 217, for example, a draft reply electronic mail item maybe automatically generated and displayed in the electronic communicationview pane to allow the user to communicate the edited document or othercontent item when the user completes the editing process. Referring tothe draft communication 217, according to one embodiment, an automaticreply message to the original sender of the electronic mail message thatattached the document 240 that is being edited by the receiving user maybe generated so that upon completion of edits to the document 240, theediting user may select a save and send function 260 for automaticallyattaching the edited version of the document or content item 240 to thedraft communication 217 for sending the communication to the originalsending user. Thus, a communication from the sending user to thereceiving user is enabled where the receiving user opens an attachment221 received from the sending user, edits the attachment 221 andautomatically sends the edited version of the attachment back to theoriginal sending user without the need for saving the attachment to ahard drive or other storage repository at which edits are made and savedfollowed by a retrieval and re-attachment of the edited content item toa communication for transmitting to the original sending user.

As described above with reference to FIG. 1, when the user begins theediting process for an attached content item, as illustrated in FIG. 2D,a temporary copy of the content item being edited is saved along withthe received electronic communication item 110 at the electroniccommunication server 108. According to one embodiment, the editedattachment is renamed to provide information to an individual recipientof the edited document and to distinguish the edited document from aprevious version of the edited document. For example, a document with afile name of “Document A” may be renamed to include a name or otheridentification for the editing user and a new name of “DocumentA.editing user” may be applied to the edited version of the attachedcontent item, and the renamed and edited version of the content item maybe stored as a temporary copy of the document 106 at the electroniccommunication server 108, as illustrated in FIG. 1. Thus, the editedversion of the content item is not stored at a separate local or remotestorage area, such as the collaboration server 112 from which the editedversion of the content item must be retrieved for eventual communicationto another user.

Referring still to FIGS. 1 through 2F, sending of an edited version ofan attached content item back to the original sending user isillustrated and described. According to embodiments, other functionalityof the electronic communication application may be utilized fordisposing of an edited version of the received attached content item.For example, instead of using a save/send function 260, as illustratedin FIG. 2D, another function such as “send as meeting request” may beprovided which, when selected, causes an automatic generation of ameeting request and an automatic attachment of the edited content itemto the meeting request. Likewise, another function, such as, “add tonotes” may be provided, which when selected, causes an automaticpresentation of a notes user interface component in the electroniccommunication view pane and automatically attaches an edited version ofthe attached content item to an electronic notes document. Anotherfunction, such as, “add to calendar entry” may be provided, which whenselected, causes an automatic opening of a calendar function and anautomatic attachment of the edited version of the content item to acalendar item in an associated electronic calendaring application. Asshould be appreciated, any number of functions may be provided similarto the save and send function 260 which when selected may cause theprovision of a user interface component in the electronic communicationview pane for automatically attaching the edited version of the attachedcontent item to another content item associated with a selectedfunctionality.

Referring now to FIG. 2G, after the automatically-generated electroniccommunication is sent to the one or more desired recipients, the sendinguser may utilize the electronic communication user interface 200 for anyelectronic communication functionality, for example, electronic mail,text messaging, instant messaging, and the like. According to oneembodiment, the sending user may review an electronic communicationconversation or thread 275 in the electronic communication pane 215concerning the recently-sent electronic communication 217 showing theattachment 221 with which the user attached an edited version of thecontent item 240, and showing a subsequent conversation item 218received back from the recipient of the user's electronic communicationcontaining yet another version of the content item 240 illustrated asattachment 222, and showing an additional attachment 225 that thesending user wishes to have the recipient review. Thus, an electronicconversation about a given topic including edits to the content item 240may be conducted between various users.

As illustrated and described above with references to FIGS. 2A through2G, a content item may be launched from an attachment received in anelectronic communication, and launched content item may be displayed inan immersive view pane to allow a user to view the displayed contentitem and his/her electronic communications simultaneously. Referring nowto FIG. 2H, according to an embodiment, a “hide email” function 285 isillustrated which when selected may cause the electronic communicationspane 215 to be temporarily hidden from view so that the immersive viewpane 237 may be expanded to consume all available display space to allowthe user a larger view of the selected content item 240. As should beappreciated, a similar function, for example, a “unhide email” functionmay be provided after hiding the electronic communications pane forallowing a user to selectively return the electronic communications paneback into view. Similarly, a function may be provided for allowing theuser to selectively hide the immersive view pane for allowing a displayof other electronic communications panes 210 and 205, as illustratedwith reference to FIG. 2A. Similarly, a “unhide” function may beprovided for un-hiding the immersive view pane and for bringing theimmersive view pane back into display along side the electroniccommunications pane, as illustrated and described herein.

FIG. 2I illustrates a computer-generated software application userinterface from which an electronic communication may be launched inassociation with a content item. As illustrated and described above, acontent item, for example, a document, may be launched by selecting anattachment associated with the content item from an electroniccommunication item which causes a display of the selected item in animmersive view pane. According to another embodiment, an electroniccommunication functionality and interface may be launched from a contentitem that is being provided by associated software applicationfunctionality. As illustrated in FIG. 2I, a user interface 290 isillustrated as a spreadsheet functionality user interface that may beprovided by a spreadsheet application for allowing a user to enter andmanipulate various data items. According to this embodiment, one or moreelectronic communications functionalities 292 may be provided in theuser interface of a given software application for initiating anelectronic communication out of the user interface in association with adocument or other content item being generated via the associated userinterface. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 2I, a “reply withchanges” functionality 292 is provided in the example spreadsheetapplication user interface 290 for automatically initiating anelectronic communication for communicating with one or more users aboutany topic, but likely for communicating with other users about thedocument contained in the user interface from which the communication isinitiated.

As should be appreciated, the illustration of the spreadsheetapplication user interface and associated data is for purposes ofexample only. That is, electronic communication functionality may beenabled in accordance with the functionality of any softwareapplication, for example, a word processing application, a slidepresentation application, a notes taking application, a databaseapplication, and the like. In addition, the “reply with changes”function 292 is for purposes of example, and is not limiting of otherelectronic communications functionalities, for example, “forwarding”,“sending”, “send as an attachment”, “forward as an attachment”, and thelike. That is, any electronic communication functionality available toan associated electronic communications application, for example, anelectronic mail application, may be provided as a selectablefunctionality in a given software application user interface.

Referring to FIG. 2J, in response to a user selection of the electroniccommunications function 292 an instance of an associated electroniccommunications user interface may be automatically launched andprovided, as illustrated in FIG. 2J. As illustrated in FIG. 2J, inresponse to selection of the electronic communication functionality 292illustrated in FIG. 2I, not only is an instance of the electronic mailuser interface launched, but an electronic mail item may beautomatically generated, and the document being edited in the examplespreadsheet may be automatically attached to the electronic mail item asattachment 225, such that when a user selects a function 293 fordisposition of the communication (e.g., sending, forwarding, replying,replying to all, etc.), then the communication may be sent to a desireduser along with an attachment of the edited document or along with apointer to a location of the stored edited document.

As should be appreciated, while the spreadsheet user interfaceillustrated in FIG. 2I and the electronic mail user interfaceillustrated in FIG. 2J are illustrated as displayed apart from otherdisplayed content, the example spreadsheet user interface may bedisplayed in an immersive view pane, as described above, and thelaunched electronic communications interface may be displayed in anelectronic communications pane, as described above, so that thebeing-edited document and the launched electronic communicationsinterface are displayed in a side-by-side or top/bottom orientation.Thus, according to this embodiment, a user may launch an electroniccommunications session out of a document generation/editing session forcommunicating a given content item to one or more other users.

Referring now to FIG. 2K, according to another embodiment, in additionto displaying and enabling editing of a content item that is attached toan electronic communication, as described above, according to anotherembodiment, a new content item may be generated out of an electroniccommunication user interface. As illustrated in FIG. 2K, the electronicmail user interface 200 with its folder pane 210 and electronic maillisting pane 205 and electronic communications pane 215 is illustrated.In addition, an insert function 295 is illustrated for allowing a userto selectively insert objects of various types into an electronic mailitem for sending the electronic mail item along with the inserted objectto one or more recipients. According to an embodiment, in addition toinserting a given object, for example, an attachment, a photograph, acontent item, a document, a data object, and the like, a new filefunction 296 may be enabled which when selected may allow for thecreation of a new content item 294 within the electronic communicationuser interface 200 that subsequently may be saved and passed to one ormore other users via an electronic communication.

Referring now to FIG. 2L, in response to selecting the “new file”function 296, as illustrated in FIG. 2K, a user interface object 297 maybe presented for allowing the user to select a file type associated withthe new content item the user desires to create. For example, the usermay be allowed to select from a word processing file, a spreadsheetfile, a slide presentation file, a notes taking file, a desktoppublishing file, a database file, and the like. That is, as should beappreciated, any file type that may be called upon by the electroniccommunications application for functionality may be used for allowingthe user to create a content item of that type.

Referring now to FIG. 2M, in response to selecting the example wordprocessing file type, an instance of a word processing application userinterface may be provided in the immersive view pane of the electroniccommunications user interface 200 for allowing a user to create adocument of that type in the immersive view pane. That is, functionalityof the selected word processing file type is provided in the immersiveview pane and a blank drafting surface 298 is provided for allowing theuser to enter content as illustrated in FIG. 2M. According to oneembodiment, after the user completes entry of the content, the user maysave the generated content to a storage location of the user's choice,or the user may select a “save and send” function 299 for automaticallysaving the newly-entered content item to an electronic communicationitem, for example, an electronic mail item to allow the newly-generatedcontent item to be transmitted with the communication item to a desiredrecipient. For example, as illustrated and described above withreference to FIG. 1, the newly-generated content item may beautomatically stored with an electronic mail item 216 at an electronicmail box 108 for subsequent transmission with the electronic mail item216.

According to one embodiment, when generation of the new content item isinitiated, the electronic mail item 216 may be automatically generatedto allow a user to send the newly-generated content item to a desiredrecipient upon completion of the content item. According to thisembodiment, the automatically-generated electronic mail item 216 may bedisplayed in the electronic communication pane 215, and attachment 216Amay be associated with the electronic mail item 216. Upon selection ofthe “save and send” function 299, the generated document 298A may beautomatically stored with the electronic mail item 216 at the electronicmail box 108, and the attachment 216A may be updated to point to thestorage location of the stored document 298A such that a subsequentrecipient of the electronic mail item 216 may select the attachment foropening, viewing and editing, if desired the newly-generated document298A.

Having described the system architecture, various user interfacecomponents and various aspects and embodiments of the present inventionwith respect to FIGS. 1 through 2M, FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating amethod for inline document collaboration through various workflows. Theroutine 300 begins as operation 305 and then proceeds to operation 310where a user receives an electronic communication with an attachedcontent item. For example, the user may receive an electronic mail,instant message, text message, chat message, or the like, having anattached content item. At operation 315, user may view the attachedcontent item in an immersive view to allow the user to view the attachedcontent item and his/her electronic communications pane showing variouselectronic communication items simultaneously. At operation 320, theuser may conduct an electronic communications conversation apart fromthe display of the selected content item, as illustrated and describedabove with reference to FIG. 2C.

At operation 325, if the user desires to edit the attached and displayedcontent item, the user may enter an edit mode wherein functionalityassociated with the content item will be provided. In response toentering the edit mode, an electronic communication may be automaticallygenerated for allowing the user to subsequently send an edited versionof the content item to one or more desired recipients. At operation 330,in response to selection of a function for saving edits to the contentitem and for sending the edited content item to one or more desiredrecipients, the edited content item may be stored with the electronicmail item in an electronic mail server 108, or the edited content itemmay be automatically stored in a separate storage location, for example,the collaboration server 112.

When the electronic communication is sent to the desired recipients, theedited content item may be attached to the communication if it is beensaved with the email, or a pointer to the saved content item may beattached to the communication to point the recipient of thecommunication to a storage location for the edited content item. Atoperation 335, after the automatically-generated communication is sent,the user's electronic communications user interface 200 may return backto a starting configuration, and the user may view a communicationconversation including a communication associated with the sent editedcontent item. At operation 340, hiding an electronic communication maybe enabled, if desired.

At operation 345, if a user desires to generate an electroniccommunication out of a user interface associated with the generation ofa given content item, the user may select an electronic communicationsfunction from a user interface provided by the associated softwareapplication, for example, a word processing application user interface,a spreadsheet application user interface, a slide presentationapplication user interface, and the like, and at operation 350, a “saveand send” function may be utilized for saving edits to an associatedcontent item and for sending a generated and/or edit content item to oneor more desired recipients, as illustrated and described above withreference to FIGS. 2I and 2J.

At operation 355, if a user utilizing his/her electronic communicationsapplication and user interface 200 desires to create a new content item,the user may select to insert a new content item within an electroniccommunication, as illustrated above with reference to FIG. 2K. Atoperation 360, an appropriate file type may be selected, and an instanceof an associated software application user interface, for example, aword processing application user interface, may be provided in theimmersive view pane for allowing the user to generate a new content itemof the desired file type.

At operation 365, the content item of the selected file type may begenerated. The generated content item may be saved a desired storagelocation, or if desired, the user may utilize a “save and send” functionfor saving the generated document with an automatically-generatedelectronic communication item and for sending the electroniccommunication item to a desired recipient by attaching thenewly-generated content item to the automatically-generated electroniccommunication item. The routine ends at operation 395.

While the invention has been described in the general context of programmodules that execute in conjunction with an application program thatruns on an operating system on a computer, those skilled in the art willrecognize that the invention may also be implemented in combination withother program modules. Generally, program modules include routines,programs, components, data structures, and other types of structuresthat perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract datatypes.

The embodiments and functionalities described herein may operate via amultitude of computing systems including, without limitation, desktopcomputer systems, wired and wireless computing systems, mobile computingsystems (e.g., mobile telephones, netbooks, tablet or slate typecomputers, notebook computers, and laptop computers), hand-held devices,multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumerelectronics, minicomputers, and mainframe computers.

In addition, the embodiments and functionalities described herein mayoperate over distributed systems (e.g., cloud-based computing systems),where application functionality, memory, data storage and retrieval andvarious processing functions may be operated remotely from each otherover a distributed computing network, such as the Internet or anintranet. User interfaces and information of various types may bedisplayed via on-board computing device displays or via remote displayunits associated with one or more computing devices. For example userinterfaces and information of various types may be displayed andinteracted with on a wall surface onto which user interfaces andinformation of various types are projected. Interaction with themultitude of computing systems with which embodiments of the inventionmay be practiced include, keystroke entry, touch screen entry, voice orother audio entry, gesture entry where an associated computing device isequipped with detection (e.g., camera) functionality for capturing andinterpreting user gestures for controlling the functionality of thecomputing device, and the like.

FIGS. 4-6 and the associated descriptions provide a discussion of avariety of operating environments in which embodiments of the inventionmay be practiced. However, the devices and systems illustrated anddiscussed with respect to FIGS. 4-6 are for purposes of example andillustration and are not limiting of a vast number of computing deviceconfigurations that may be utilized for practicing embodiments of theinvention, described herein.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating physical components (i.e.,hardware) of a computing device 400 with which embodiments of theinvention may be practiced. The computing device components describedbelow may be suitable for the client device 104 a-n described above. Ina basic configuration, the computing device 400 may include at least oneprocessing unit 402 and a system memory 404. Depending on theconfiguration and type of computing device, the system memory 404 maycomprise, but is not limited to, volatile storage (e.g., random accessmemory), non-volatile storage (e.g., read-only memory), flash memory, orany combination of such memories. The system memory 404 may include anoperating system 405 and one or more program modules 406 suitable forrunning software applications 450. The operating system 405, forexample, may be suitable for controlling the operation of the computingdevice 400. Furthermore, embodiments of the invention may be practicedin conjunction with a graphics library, other operating systems, or anyother application program and is not limited to any particularapplication or system. This basic configuration is illustrated in FIG. 4by those components within a dashed line 408. The computing device 400may have additional features or functionality. For example, thecomputing device 400 may also include additional data storage devices(removable and/or non-removable) such as, for example, magnetic disks,optical disks, or tape. Such additional storage is illustrated in FIG. 4by a removable storage device 409 and a non-removable storage device410.

As stated above, a number of program modules and data files may bestored in the system memory 404. While executing on the processing unit402, the program modules 406 may perform processes including, but notlimited to, one or more of the stages of the method 300 illustrated inFIG. 3. Other program modules that may be used in accordance withembodiments of the present invention and may include applications suchas electronic mail and contacts applications, word processingapplications, spreadsheet applications, database applications, slidepresentation applications, drawing or computer-aided applicationprograms, etc.

Furthermore, embodiments of the invention may be practiced in anelectrical circuit comprising discrete electronic elements, packaged orintegrated electronic chips containing logic gates, a circuit utilizinga microprocessor, or on a single chip containing electronic elements ormicroprocessors. For example, embodiments of the invention may bepracticed via a system-on-a-chip (SOC) where each or many of thecomponents illustrated in FIG. 4 may be integrated onto a singleintegrated circuit. Such an SOC device may include one or moreprocessing units, graphics units, communications units, systemvirtualization units and various application functionality all of whichare integrated (or “burned”) onto the chip substrate as a singleintegrated circuit. When operating via an SOC, the functionality,described herein, with respect to providing an activity stream acrossmultiple workloads may be operated via application-specific logicintegrated with other components of the computing device 400 on thesingle integrated circuit (chip). Embodiments of the invention may alsobe practiced using other technologies capable of performing logicaloperations such as, for example, AND, OR, and NOT, including but notlimited to mechanical, optical, fluidic, and quantum technologies. Inaddition, embodiments of the invention may be practiced within a generalpurpose computer or in any other circuits or systems.

The computing device 400 may also have one or more input device(s) 412such as a keyboard, a mouse, a pen, a sound input device, a touch inputdevice, etc. The output device(s) 414 such as a display, speakers, aprinter, etc. may also be included. The aforementioned devices areexamples and others may be used. The computing device 400 may includeone or more communication connections 416 allowing communications withother computing devices 418. Examples of suitable communicationconnections 416 include, but are not limited to, RF transmitter,receiver, and/or transceiver circuitry; universal serial bus (USB),parallel, and/or serial ports.

The term computer readable media as used herein may include computerstorage media. Computer storage media may include volatile andnonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any methodor technology for storage of information, such as computer readableinstructions, data structures, or program modules. The system memory404, the removable storage device 409, and the non-removable storagedevice 410 are all computer storage media examples (i.e., memorystorage.) Computer storage media may include RAM, ROM, electricallyerasable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memorytechnology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other opticalstorage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage orother magnetic storage devices, or any other article of manufacturewhich can be used to store information and which can be accessed by thecomputing device 400. Any such computer storage media may be part of thecomputing device 400. Computer storage media does not include a carrierwave or other propagated or modulated data signal.

Communication media may be embodied by computer readable instructions,data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated datasignal, such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, andincludes any information delivery media. The term “modulated datasignal” may describe a signal that has one or more characteristics setor changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal. Byway of example, and not limitation, communication media may includewired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, andwireless media such as acoustic, radio frequency (RF), infrared, andother wireless media.

FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate a mobile computing device 500, for example, amobile telephone, a smart phone, a tablet personal computer, a laptopcomputer, and the like, with which embodiments of the invention may bepracticed. With reference to FIG. 5A, one embodiment of a mobilecomputing device 500 for implementing the embodiments is illustrated. Ina basic configuration, the mobile computing device 500 is a handheldcomputer having both input elements and output elements. The mobilecomputing device 500 typically includes a display 505 and one or moreinput buttons 510 that allow the user to enter information into themobile computing device 500. The display 505 of the mobile computingdevice 500 may also function as an input device (e.g., a touch screendisplay). If included, an optional side input element 515 allows furtheruser input. The side input element 515 may be a rotary switch, a button,or any other type of manual input element. In alternative embodiments,mobile computing device 500 may incorporate more or less input elements.For example, the display 505 may not be a touch screen in someembodiments. In yet another alternative embodiment, the mobile computingdevice 500 is a portable phone system, such as a cellular phone. Themobile computing device 500 may also include an optional keypad 535.Optional keypad 535 may be a physical keypad or a “soft” keypadgenerated on the touch screen display. In various embodiments, theoutput elements include the display 505 for showing a graphical userinterface (GUI), a visual indicator 520 (e.g., a light emitting diode),and/or an audio transducer 525 (e.g., a speaker). In some embodiments,the mobile computing device 500 incorporates a vibration transducer forproviding the user with tactile feedback. In yet another embodiment, themobile computing device 500 incorporates input and/or output ports, suchas an audio input (e.g., a microphone jack), an audio output (e.g., aheadphone jack), and a video output (e.g., a HDMI port) for sendingsignals to or receiving signals from an external device.

FIG. 5B is a block diagram illustrating the architecture of oneembodiment of a mobile computing device. That is, the mobile computingdevice 500 can incorporate a system (i.e., an architecture) 502 toimplement some embodiments. In one embodiment, the system 502 isimplemented as a “smart phone” capable of running one or moreapplications (e.g., browser, e-mail, calendaring, contact managers,messaging clients, games, and media clients/players). In someembodiments, the system 502 is integrated as a computing device, such asan integrated personal digital assistant (PDA) and wireless phone.

One or more application programs 550 may be loaded into the memory 562and run on or in association with the operating system 564. Examples ofthe application programs include phone dialer programs, electroniccommunication applications, personal information management (PIM)programs, word processing programs, spreadsheet programs, Internetbrowser programs, messaging programs, and so forth. The system 502 alsoincludes a non-volatile storage area 568 within the memory 562. Thenon-volatile storage area 568 may be used to store persistentinformation that should not be lost if the system 502 is powered down.The application programs 550 may use and store information in thenon-volatile storage area 568, such as e-mail or other messages used byan e-mail application, and the like. A synchronization application (notshown) also resides on the system 502 and is programmed to interact witha corresponding synchronization application resident on a host computerto keep the information stored in the non-volatile storage area 568synchronized with corresponding information stored at the host computer.As should be appreciated, other applications may be loaded into thememory 562 and run on the mobile computing device 500.

The system 502 has a power supply 570, which may be implemented as oneor more batteries. The power supply 570 might further include anexternal power source, such as an AC adapter or a powered docking cradlethat supplements or recharges the batteries.

The system 502 may also include a radio 572 that performs the functionof transmitting and receiving radio frequency communications. The radio572 facilitates wireless connectivity between the system 502 and the“outside world,” via a communications carrier or service provider.Transmissions to and from the radio 572 are conducted under control ofthe operating system 564. In other words, communications received by theradio 572 may be disseminated to the application programs 550 via theoperating system 564, and vice versa.

The visual indicator 520 may be used to provide visual notificationsand/or an audio interface 574 may be used for producing audiblenotifications via the audio transducer 525. In the illustratedembodiment, the visual indicator 520 is a light emitting diode (LED) andthe audio transducer 525 is a speaker. These devices may be directlycoupled to the power supply 570 so that when activated, they remain onfor a duration dictated by the notification mechanism even though theprocessor 560 and other components might shut down for conservingbattery power. The LED may be programmed to remain on indefinitely untilthe user takes action to indicate the powered-on status of the device.The audio interface 574 is used to provide audible signals to andreceive audible signals from the user. For example, in addition to beingcoupled to the audio transducer 525, the audio interface 574 may also becoupled to a microphone to receive audible input, such as to facilitatea telephone conversation. In accordance with embodiments of the presentinvention, the microphone may also serve as an audio sensor tofacilitate control of notifications, as will be described below. Thesystem 502 may further include a video interface 576 that enables anoperation of an on-board camera 530 to record still images, videostream, and the like.

A mobile computing device 500 implementing the system 502 may haveadditional features or functionality. For example, the mobile computingdevice 500 may also include additional data storage devices (removableand/or non-removable) such as, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tape.Such additional storage is illustrated in FIG. 5B by the non-volatilestorage area 568.

Data/information generated or captured by the mobile computing device500 and stored via the system 502 may be stored locally on the mobilecomputing device 500, as described above, or the data may be stored onany number of storage media that may be accessed by the device via theradio 572 or via a wired connection between the mobile computing device500 and a separate computing device associated with the mobile computingdevice 500, for example, a server computer in a distributed computingnetwork, such as the Internet. As should be appreciated suchdata/information may be accessed via the mobile computing device 500 viathe radio 572 or via a distributed computing network. Similarly, suchdata/information may be readily transferred between computing devicesfor storage and use according to well-known data/information transferand storage means, including electronic mail and collaborativedata/information sharing systems.

FIG. 6 illustrates one embodiment of the architecture of a system forproviding the functionality described herein across components of adistributed computing environment. Content developed, interacted with,or edited in association with the applications described above may bestored in different communication channels or other storage types. Forexample, various documents may be stored using a directory service 622,a web portal 624, a mailbox service 626, an instant messaging store 628,or a social networking site 630. The application 620 (e.g., anelectronic communication application) may use any of these types ofsystems or the like for providing the functionalities described hereinacross multiple workloads, as described herein. A server 615, 108 mayprovide the functionality to clients 605A-C and 104A-N. As one example,the server 615, 108 may be a web server providing the applicationfunctionality described herein over the web. The server 615, 108 mayprovide the application functionality over the web to clients 605A-C and104A-N through a network 120, 610. By way of example, a client computingdevice 104A-N may be implemented and embodied in a personal computer605A, a tablet computing device 605B and/or a mobile computing device605C (e.g., a smart phone), or other computing device. Any of theseembodiments of the client computing device may obtain content from thestore 616.

Embodiments of the present invention, for example, are described abovewith reference to block diagrams and/or operational illustrations ofmethods, systems, and computer program products according to embodimentsof the invention. The functions/acts noted in the blocks may occur outof the order as shown in any flowchart. For example, two blocks shown insuccession may in fact be executed substantially concurrently or theblocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending uponthe functionality/acts involved.

The description and illustration of one or more embodiments provided inthis application are not intended to limit or restrict the scope of theinvention as claimed in any way. The embodiments, examples, and detailsprovided in this application are considered sufficient to conveypossession and enable others to make and use the best mode of claimedinvention. The claimed invention should not be construed as beinglimited to any embodiment, example, or detail provided in thisapplication. Regardless of whether shown and described in combination orseparately, the various features (both structural and methodological)are intended to be selectively included or omitted to produce anembodiment with a particular set of features. Having been provided withthe description and illustration of the present application, one skilledin the art may envision variations, modifications, and alternateembodiments falling within the spirit of the broader aspects of thegeneral inventive concept embodied in this application that do notdepart from the broader scope of the claimed invention.

We claim:
 1. A method of generating an electronic communication out of acontent generation workflow, comprising: providing an application userinterface for generating, editing and/or displaying one or more contentitems; providing one or more electronic communications functionalitiesin the application user interface; receiving a content item in theapplication user interface; in response to a selection of one of the oneor more electronic communications functionalities, automaticallygenerating an electronic communication for communicating the receivedcontent item to one or more desired recipients.
 2. The method of claim1, wherein providing an application user interface for generating,editing and/or displaying one or more content items includes providingan application user interface for one or more of a word processingapplication, a spreadsheet application, a slide presentationapplication, a database application, a notes taking application, adesktop publishing application, a calendar application, a tasksapplication and a reminders application.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein providing one or more electronic communications functionalitiesin the application user interface includes providing one or more of areply function, a reply with changes function, a forward function, asend function, a send as an attachment function, and a forward as anattachment function.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving acontent item in the application user interface includes receiving thecontent item into the application user interface in response toselection of an attachment in an associated electronic communication. 5.The method of claim 1, in response to a selection of one of the one ormore electronic communications functionalities and prior toautomatically generating an electronic communication for communicatingthe received content item to one or more desired recipients, launchingan electronic communications interface for generating the electroniccommunication and for sending the generated electronic communication tothe one or more desired recipients.
 6. The method of claim 5, prior toautomatically generating an electronic communication for communicatingthe received content item to one or more desired recipients, storing aninstance of the received content item for attachment to theautomatically generated electronic communication.
 7. The method of claim6, further comprising: in the electronic communications interface,automatically generating the electronic communication and automaticallyattaching the stored instance of the received content item to thegenerated electronic communication for sending the electroniccommunication and the attached stored instance of the received contentitem to the one or more desired recipients.
 8. The method of claim 6,further comprising: in the electronic communications interface,automatically generating the electronic communication and automaticallyattaching a pointer to the stored instance of the received content itemto the generated electronic communication for sending the electroniccommunication and the pointer to the attached stored instance of thereceived content item to the one or more desired recipients.
 9. Themethod of claim 7, wherein if the selected one of the one or moreelectronic communications functionalities is a reply functionality,automatically populating a receiving address for the generatedelectronic communication with an address for an original sender of anelectronic communication from which the received content item wasreceived.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein if the selected one of theone or more electronic communications functionalities is a reply to allfunctionality, automatically populating a receiving address for thegenerated electronic communication with an address for all addresseesincluded in an electronic communication from which the received contentitem was received.
 11. The method of claim 7, wherein if a desiredrecipient of the generated electronic communication is not designated,providing a field in the generated electronic communication forreceiving an address for the one or more desired recipients.
 12. Themethod of claim 1, wherein providing an application user interface forgenerating, editing and/or displaying one or more content items includesproviding the application user interface in an immersive view pane in anelectronic communications user interface, the electronic communicationsuser interface having a communications pane in which the automaticallygenerated electronic communication is generated for communicating thereceived content item to one or more desired recipients.
 13. A methodfor providing immersive document view and use in an electroniccommunications user interface, comprising: in a computer-generatedelectronic communications user interface, providing a communicationspane in which is disposed one or more electronic communications where atleast one of the one or more electronic communications includes acontent item attachment; in response to a selection of the content itemattachment, displaying an associated content item in an immersive viewpane in the electronic communications user interface for allowing a viewof both the displayed content item and the one or more electroniccommunications in a single display of the electronic communications userinterface; and providing for removing the communications pane fromdisplay in the computer-generated electronic communications userinterface for providing additional display space for the immersive viewpane and providing for removing the immersive view pane from display inthe computer-generated electronic communications user interface forproviding additional display space for the communications pane.
 14. Themethod of claim 13, wherein providing for removing the communicationspane from display includes providing a hide function for temporarilyhiding the communications pane from display.
 15. The method of claim 14,further comprising providing an unhide function for returning thecommunications pane to display in the computer-generated electroniccommunications user interface.
 16. The method of claim 13, whereinproviding for removing the immersive view pane from display includesproviding a hide function for temporarily hiding the immersive view panefrom display.
 17. The method of claim 16, further comprising providingan unhide function for returning the immersive view pane to display inthe computer-generated electronic communications user interface.
 18. Acomputer-readable medium containing computer executable instructions,which when executed by a computer perform a method of generating anelectronic communication out of a content generation workflow,comprising: providing an application user interface for generating,editing and/or displaying one or more content items; providing one ormore electronic communications functionalities in the application userinterface; receiving a content item in the application user interface;in response to a selection of one of the one or more electroniccommunications functionalities, storing an instance of the receivedcontent item; and launching an electronic communications user interfacefor automatically generating an electronic communication for sending thestored instance of the received content item to one or more desiredrecipients.
 19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, whereinproviding an application user interface for generating, editing and/ordisplaying one or more content items includes providing an applicationuser interface for one or more of a word processing application, aspreadsheet application, a slide presentation application, a databaseapplication, a notes taking application, a desktop publishingapplication, a calendar application, a tasks application and a remindersapplication.
 20. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, whereinproviding one or more electronic communications functionalities in theapplication user interface includes providing one or more of a replyfunction, a reply with changes function, a forward function, a sendfunction, a send as an attachment function, and a forward as anattachment function.